Thank you,Eyeless for joining my group. If there is anything I can do to help you, please let me know and I will do my very best to assist you. I am considered "legally blind" but I am still a "go getter". Also feel free to post anything you feel would be of assistance to others or any stories yo... View More 9 minutes ago - Delete
txtrulady is online. txtrulady wrote... Yes you are so right, Kenny. This is a funny story but I just cannot help myself, I have to tell it. Many years ago when I first starting losing vision, I attended the School for the Blind in Austin and was taking cane lessons. They have particular buttons on the street lights made especially for the blind and visually impaired to use. Well as we were all in training for this class we were at one of these stop lights and the leaser of the group pushed the button so the light would go red so we could cross the street. Fortunately for me, I still resumed some eyesihgt and was watching an individual in a car a nd they were motioning with their hands for us to cross. I could not do anything but start laughing as this individual kept motioning with hands for all of us BLIND OR VISUALLY IMPAIRED TO SEE HIS HAND MOTIONS. We have laughed about that incident for years.
One of my pastimes is taking unofficial surveys; it’s another one of those involuntary kenny things that at times tends to be extreme. One of those surveys is like a reoccurring nightmare that for some strange reason I seem to enjoy. While in traffic I find myself counting the number of drivers who are obliviously engaged in some kind of cell phone activity. The unofficial kenny count is at least 3 out of every 5 drivers are engaged with their cell phone which disengages them from their driving. I know the mantra of the day is multi-task – multi task, but when that kind of multi tasking puts lives in danger, then why don’t we just wait till we’re in the kitchen to multi task. I vaguely remember hearing the term “blind spot” while I was studying for the written portion of the driving test, or it could have been during the time I was sitting in a day long, court mandated driver safety class that would expunge a traffic ticket, could have been both, in any case the term “blind spot” created light bulb moment. Apparently blind spots are a major cause of traffic wrecks, and every motor vehicle has them. If you’re driving it’s that spot just over your right shoulder looking back to the right rear of your vehicle. Blind Spots; a daily phenomenon even those of us who have sight have to contend with. During occasional bouts of depression, as I sit-in my own self imposed darkness, battling stealth blind spots, I gather strength from those whom have never seen, and still have the perception, and strength to forge onward. Rite On, kenny.
Posts: 20 #1 October 26, 4:36 pm JAWS and Magic If you are visually impaired and struggling by with fixes like screen magnifiers or point and click screen readers that lack much desired magnification, come into the world of JAWS and Magic. Go to http://www.freedomscientific.com or http://www.hj.com to find out more. The software is expensive (about $700 for Magic and $1400 for JAWS), but it really changed my life. JAWS is a really great screen reader that works with key commands. Magic is a screen magnifier and point & click screen reader program.
I used to need help performing the simplest tasks, like reading and sending emails. Even though I had finished college before my discovery of JAWS and Magic came along, I felt so hopeless and dependent without the ability to perform the simplest tasks. Vocational Rehab bought the software for me. I would recommend checking there, since it is expensive. Freedom Scientific also lists free webinairs on their site to teach people to use the software. Last update on October 26, 4:42 pm by kassie_love.
A warm welcome to all our members, old and new. Here are a few more tips to assist you in your mobility and every day life
Guide Animals
Guide dog use began in Germany in the 1920’s for veterans of World War I who lost their sight. In 1929, The Seeing Eye (http://www.seeingeye.org) became the first group in the United States to breed, raise, and train guide dogs. Although the formal training of guide dogs dates back 75 years, training only became more widespread in the last 30 years and there are many groups raising and training these dogs.
Guide dogs help the blind/visually impaired to “see” in their everyday lives. Guide dogs assist by stopping their human companion before crossing streets and making sure the streets are safe to cross, by avoiding obstacles such as signs, cars, and other people, and by helping their companion locate things.
The most common breeds used as guide dogs are German Shepherds, Labrador Retrievers, and Golden Retrievers. These guide dogs often wear a harness with a stiff, short, U-shaped handle that keeps the dog and the human companion in very close contact with each other.
The Guide Horse Foundation (http://www.guidehorse.org) began in 1999 with the goal of training miniature horses as guide horses for the visually impaired. These miniature horses provide an alternative mobility function for blind people and so far perform well at keeping their people safe.
8:02 am Transportation And The Visually Impaired One of the main challenges with the visually impaired is transportation. One of the majoy ways to overcome this challenge is to search for local clubs or agencies who manage specifically the visually impaired as every city with a certin population has to provide transportation for the disabled. This includes every disability, but the visually impaired have different challenges which makes it very difficult for them to be qualified for public transportation. In my own personal experiences, I got in contact with the Commission For The Blind in my area, not to be confused with The Federation For the Blind.
txtrulady is online. Posted August 30, 2011 by txtrulady in Family & Home I was watching TV last night and just happened to turn to the OWN network and viewed a story about a man who was a judge in a certain area (did not catch the state). The individual uses all kinds of modern technology that is available to assist him at work in his courtroom. This individual had lost his vision due to macular degeneration in his early 20's but his determination to become a judge did not stop at that point. He continued on to Law school and received his degrees and is now a judge. He uses a seeing eye dog for mobility and is such an inspiration to anyone who has visual impairment or blind. I wanted to share this story to everyone to show once again, "Where there is a will, there is a way".
